primula candilabra
colin lister
Posts: 2
I saw a new collection of candilabra at Harlow carr, thay blew my mind !! it states in the books that thay are bog plants but if I remember thay were on a bank,,,,still I was determind to get some.....
i got one plant it had three flowers first year, we were moving from leeds to the east coast so in winter i dug it up and placed it in a bucket and forgot about it untill the move ,when i got to the new house potted it in a large container ,its may now and its got 8 buds and looking good.
I went to a local garden center and found 8 pots of about 9 plants each for £2 purchased the lot split 2 pots making 18 individual plants and then after reading that thay do better as a clump left 6 clumps but repotted into a larger containers 3 plants per container all looking good so far !!!!!!!!!!!
Posts
I love those, I bought 33 tiny plugs from Parkers last autumn, they were very good, and all flowering this year, I have them standing in the margins of my pond.
I didnt know about keeping them together in clumps, I may put 3 in a large pot as well if you think thats better.
People keen on candelabra primulas might like to know about Fairhaven Gardens, near Norwich - home to the largest collection of naturalised candelabras in the country - at this time of year the place is absolutely magical
http://www.eveningnews24.co.uk/fairhaven_primulas_photo_gallery_1_891754?id=2&storyId=1
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
I bought lots of candelabra Primulas after seeing a pic of the ones at Harlow Carr too - most didn't flower last year but I think all have buds on at the mo and the valley red are all flowering.
Mine are planted in a mixture of conditions from the pond margins to a strip of normal soil and they all look about the same. The place I bought them from said bog Primulas could be kept in full sun if the soil was kept damp.
What lovely pictures Dove
You can grow your own collection fairly easily!
Monty Don showed this on GW a year or two back. Prepare some seed trays with moist compost. Pick some seedpods just as they are beginning to ripen. The seeds inside will still be green, but sow them anyway. Put the trays inside plastic bags for slug protection and to stop them drying out and put them somewhere cool and shady. It will take a while but eventually you will see tiny seedlings. Leave them in the trays until they are large enough to handle and pot on or plant in a nursery area. If the bees have done their stuff some will be like the parents and some will be a mix of varieties. I tried this and it worked well for me.
I'll try that Buttercupdays
Do you think they would self seed too or do the seeds have to be unripe?
They do self seed but the seedlings are tiny, so have to be lucky to survive. If you have enough plants and don't need to weed too often you will find new seedlings. I have a moist bank with primulas above a gravel path and that is the place where I find new seedlings - a spring keeps the whole area, including the gravel, moist all year.
I love the candelabra primula's at Harlow Carr, the year before last I arrived as the seed was just about ready to harvest and some just jumped into my bag without my knowledge (but with my mothers knowledge apparently!
). now I've got loads flowering, but they are all red so far which is a little disappointing, but there are some more just about to flower, so I live in hope of more colours
Harlow carr candelabra primula seed is often included in the RHS seed distribution for members.
Chiltern seeds usually have a good selection too. I found them easy to grow from seed, flowering the second year.